Chapter 1
"Come on, Lexy! You're going to be late for your bus again!" Mom called down the hall. Lexy was a sophomore at a new high school in the middle of the town and was barely waking up to the sound of her mother's voice outside her door. "If you don't get up right now, I won't let you stay up after ten again." Mom threatened through the closed door. Lexy mumbled to herself that she needed to start making coffee really early in the morning before her mom got up so that they weren't so grouchy once they got up. "Lexy, your bus is going to show up in fifteen minutes if you don't get up this minute!" Lexy slowly got out of bed and answered her mom in a sleepy tone.
"All right, all right! I'm up. Now leave me alone. I'll be ready when I'll be ready." Then she heard her mom's footsteps fade down the hall. She opened the door a crack to see if her mom had really gone downstairs and when the coast was clear, she took off her pajamas to reveal black clothes with several symbols on them. "Well, at least my I have my 'original' school's clothes in the bottom of my bag." Lexy whispered to herself. Lexy opened the door again and snuck out of the house while her mom was making herself breakfast. Once Lexy silently closed the front door she ran across the street and went to the back of their next door neighbor's house. In the back alley was Lexy's best friend Semphoni waiting for her in a black Porsche.
"What took you so long? I've been waiting here for hours!" Semphoni spoke irritatedly. Lexy looked at her and just rolled her eyes.
"I had to pretend that I slept in and then I had to wait for my mom to go back downstairs and then..." Lexy started.
"Okay. You can tell me later, Lex. K?" Semphoni interrupted. Lexy glared at her, but shrugged it off and got into the passengers seat of Semphoni's Porsche. As Semphoni slowly pulled out of the alley, Lexy ducked down into her seat and waited until they passed the corner before sitting up again.
"Why do you do that?" Semphoni asked her. "Do what? I do that all the time." Lexy started.
"Yeah, but why? Your mom doesn't pay attention to any car that passes by your house. So what's the big deal?" Semphoni asked again.
"I do it just in case my mom might have found out that I sneak out of the house after I pretend to sleep in everyday." Lexy explained.
"Everyday?" Semphoni asked questioningly and sarcastically.
"You know what I mean. Don't even start that with me." Lexy ordered.
"Okay, but when you finally get the answer come find me." Semphoni said sarcastically. After they had passed at least six blocks, Lexy leaned forward and turned the radio on to find her favorite song playing. She leaned forward again and turned it up as loud as she wanted it. Then the two of them started bouncing in their seats to the tempo of the music. As Semphoni slowly to a stop at the red light, a group of guys in a red Camaro pulled up next to them. Lexy rolled down her window to let the cool air rush over her and suddenly realized that the guys in the car next to them were whistling and waving at Semphoni and her. The two of them turned to each other and started laughing quietly. Then the red Camaro turned into their lane once the light turned green.
"What do you think they're doing, Sem?" Lexy asked nervously.
"I have no idea. Seriously. Just don't worry about it and we'll feel better once we get to school." Semphoni tried to assure Lexy of.
"I don't trust them. They seemed to be a little too friendly. You know what I mean?" Lexy explained. Semphoni leaned forward and turned the music louder to try to distract them from the red Camaro that started following them. As they danced in their seats, they could feel themselves being watched. Lexy turned around and didn't see a red Camaro following them anymore, but saw another black vehicle following them. According to what Lexy could see, the driver was holding what looked like a gun. "Semphoni! Go, go! NOW! He's holding a gun!" Lexy yelled at Semphoni. Semphoni did a short, high-pitched scream and put the pedal to the metal, literally. After about ten blocks of speeding, Semphoni eased up on the pedal and tried to calm herself.
"What the hell was that!?" Semphoni exasperated.
"I don't know, but when I turned around to see the guys they weren't there and that black car showed up out of nowhere." Lexy said breathlessly.
"Well, next time you're driving. Got it?" Semphoni suggested.
"Why would I drive? I don't even have my license yet." Lexy pointed out.
"You have your permit though and I have my license so we're covered if we ever get pulled over because of a stunt like that." Semphoni pointed out more matter-of-factly than Lexy did. Semphoni stopped at the next red light and this time neither of them turned to their left or right to see who was there. Semphoni slowed her pace as Lexy cranked the music loud again. As the two danced in their seats once again, their tension released and they felt calmer than a few minutes ago.
"So are you going to see Taylor at lunch again?" Lexy asked Semphoni. Taylor was Semphoni's best friend that claimed to be her boyfriend even though she completely denies it.
"I'm not going to see him today." Semphoni said flatly.
"How come? Did you two fight or was it Angelika again?" Lexy questioned. Semphoni looked over at Lexy and gave her a hard stare. Angelika is one of Lexy's best friends that doesn't get along well with Semphoni at all. Lexy turned away from her gaze and changed the subject. "So, did you study for the math test today?" Lexy asked flatly.
"No! Are you kidding me?! What makes you think I'd do something like that?" Semphoni asked meaner than what she anticipated. Lexy jolted a little from the sound of Semphoni's harsh voice and didn't say another word the rest of the way to school. Semphoni leaned forward and turned the music off so that they didn't have to pretend that they were listening when they weren't at all.
"Don't act so mad today." Lexy spoke softly more to herself than to Semphoni. Suddenly the car swerved to the side of the road and Lexy looked over at Semphoni to see that she was being glared at; harshly.
"What is you're problem!?" Semphoni screamed at Lexy.
"I wasn't even talking to you! I'm not going to let you ruin my good Friday. At tomorrow's sunrise I'm going with the group out to the cemetery to hang out. Want to come along?" Lexy asked innocently.
"No thank you." Semphoni said in a not-so-nice tone. "I need to stop and pick up Kira this morning." Semphoni attacked. Kira is Lexy and Semphoni's best friend and is the one that has all the needed answers. Lexy turned around in her seat so that she was looking out her window and didn't say a word until they stopped and picked up Kira.
"Hey, Kira! What are you going to do tonight?" Lexy asked gleefully. Kira sat in the back and didn't say anything for what seemed like hours.
"Um...I don't think I'm doing anything tonight. Why?" Kira replied.
"I was just going to see if you wanted to come with me and the group at sunrise out to the cemetery to hang out." Lexy explained. Kira looked at Semphoni and then at Lexy while she thought of what she should do. She never told Lexy that she would be with Semphoni over the weekend.
"Uh...um...well...I can't." Kira finally replied.
"How come?" Lexy asked puzzled. She has never had anything else to do, Lexy thought to herself.
"I'm going to be with Semphoni all weekend. We're going to go up to her family's cabin and spend a couple of nights there. Didn't she tell you?" Kira explained as clearly as she could have. Lexy gave Kira a look of disbelief and glared at Semphoni.
"Yeah, you're not doing anything. Why didn't you just tell me?" Lexy said as she gave a Semphoni one of those distrusting looks. All Semphoni did was turn back around in her seat, started the car, and headed for their "school" that lied in the middle of town. The rest of the drive was extremely quiet except for the vibration of the engine and the brakes squeaking whenever Semphoni stepped on the pedal. That whole time all Lexy could think about was why Semphoni didn't just tell her that her and Kira were going up to the family's cabin for the weekend.
"Why didn't you just tell me that you and Kira were going to the cabin?" Lexy broke the silence. "Did you think that I was going to be angry or something? I wasn't going to be. You know I'll understand anything that you tell me. You didn't have to make Kira break it to me that just you two were leaving for the weekend. Why didn't you tell me? Can't I be trusted enough to be told by you?" Lexy asked confused and sad. Semphoni's mood finally changed and both Lexy and Kira could feel it.
"I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to be worried about me over the weekend. I didn't make Kira tell you, she chose to. I do trust you and you can be trusted. It's just that I've had a very frustrating week that's all." Semphoni described. Then Kira decided to become a part of this little discussion.
"So what are you guys really talking about? Are you using telepathy again?" Kira asked irritated. "It is so unfair when I don' t know what you're really saying." Kira whined as she slid into the back of her seat. Telepathy is another way of communicating where one can talk to someone no matter where they are and enter their mind to talk. Since Semphoni and Lexy have it as a trait, they use it constantly during class and when they don't want anyone else to hear their conversation. As Semphoni and Lexy continued their little conversation for another few minutes, Kira fell asleep in the back seat and didn't make a sound. Lexy told Semphoni to hold on as she turned around to find Kira sound asleep sprawled out on the seat.
"I think it's okay to actually talk now." Lexy suggested.
"Alright. If Kira's really out of it then we have an advantage." Semphoni smirked.
"Why did you put that idea of her going to the cabin with you in her head? That was really mean of you to do something like that." Lexy scolded.
"Well what do you want me to do about it?" Semphoni asked.
"Well, why don't you start by erasing that memory and replace it with her coming with us tonight. And when I say 'everything', I mean 'everything'." Lexy made Semphoni swear to it. Semphoni rolled her eyes at her and started to concentrate on Kira asleep in the back seat and removed that first memory and replaced it with her coming with them that night.
"Okay. It's done." Semphoni said disapprovingly.
"You're just going to have to deal with it. That's all I have to say about it." Lexy pointed out. The last few minutes driving to Sharla's were very quiet. Semphoni parked in her drive way and talked to Sharla through telepathy to let her know that they were here. From inside the car, they heard Sharla and her dad yelling at each other until she finally shut the door. Then it went really quiet again. Sharla opened the back door and was shocked to see Kira asleep.
"What did you guys do to her?" Sharla asked worriedly.
"Nothing. We played around with her and then changed her memory so that she knew that she was coming with us tonight." Semphoni explained before Lexy got a chance to speak. Sharla went to speak, but Lexy warned to think better of it and if she wanted to live that she wouldn't want to say anything that would upset Semphoni. Sharla did a little jump that made everyone else jump as Kira abruptly sat up and completely forgot where she was and started freaking out.
"Shh. Shhshhshh. Calm down. You're okay, Kira. We're right here. You're okay. I've got you." Lexy and Sharla comforted. Kira finally calmed down and remembered that they weren't going to school. It was way to early to head to school.
"What time is it?" Kira asked still half asleep. Semphoni shot a quick glance at her radio and told her what time it was.
"It's 8:46." Kira, Lexy and Sharla all sighed heavily and tried to go to sleep on Semphoni.
"It's too early!" Sharla and Lexy whined together.
"Why don't we go over to our school, get in the school and head to our rooms to sleep." Kira suggested.
"No way! I'm going to take you three shopping since, technically, we're supposed to still be in bed right now." Semphoni stated. Sharla leaned in between the two front seats and gave Semphoni a questioning look.
"Why are doing this to us? We're tired, we want to sleep and you want to go to the mall. Just you. None of us really want to go with you." Then Lexy sat up right after Sharla finished talking, but didn't say anything.
"Mall? Where's the mall? I want to go to the mall!" Kira started to whine.
"Yeah let's go! I'm not tired anymore! Let's go, Sem!" Lexy urged. Sharla sighed and slammed back into her seat.
"Greeeeaaaaaat!" Sharla said sarcastically. As Semphoni continued to drive toward the mall, Kira then leaned between the front seats and turned on the radio. Then she changed the station to 98.5 , cranked the music up a little bit and sat back in her seat pleased with herself as everyone in the car started to wake up again and started dancing.
"So where do we want to go first? McDonald's for breakfast? Shoe Carnival to get a different look? Head Over Heels for a dress for our school's prom? Wal-Mart for random things? Come on! Pick someplace!" Semphoni yelled impatiently. For another ten minutes or so, the whole car was quiet as they tried making up their minds.
"I call Head Over Heels for our first stop!" Kira squealed with anticipation.
"I call McDonald's for our very first stop for breakfast, but I call Shoe Carnival for our second stop!" Lexy called.
"I call McDonald's for our lunch stop!" Sharla exclaimed.
"Okay, then I guess I call Wal-Mart as our last stop before we've got to head to the school tonight." Semphoni asked with joy and excitement in her voice.
"Wait. Why did we call McDonald's twice?" Kira asked. Then the whole car burst into a frenzy of laughter. "What! It's just a question." Kira joked. Semphoni pulled into the McDonald's parking lot and turned down the radio before she turned off the car and everyone got out of the car.
"So, before we go in, what do we want?" Lexy asked.
"Cheese burger! Chicken strips! Hold the Ketchup! Fish fillet! Chicken club!" Everyone yelled at different times. Then simultaneously they said, "And don't forget the fries!" They all laughed and had to quiet each other down just so that they didn't disturb anyone else in the restaurant.
"Okay, Kira. You order first, then Sharla, then Lexy, and then me." Semphoni ordered everyone.
"Okay. Well, hi, um...I'll have a double cheese burger. No pickles, no mustard light on the ketchup. Oh! And a large fry, please." Kira added sweetly. The guy taking their order gave her one of those you're-really-sexy looks and finished typing her part in. Then Sharla moved up.
"Okay. Hi. I'll have the chicken club. Grilled not crispy. Two large root beers since Kira forgot to order her drink. And a medium fry. Thanks." Sharla added and the guy gave her the same look as he had given Kira. Then Lexy stepped up.
"Hi! I'll have a fish fillet. Light on the tartar. A large mountain dew and a large fry. Thank you!" Lexy added also. The guy was liking all of them at the moment and decided to give them all the same look. Then last, but certainly not least, Semphoni walked up.
"Hey! I"ll have a McNugget meal with extra barbecue. A large lemonade and medium fry. Thanks! And that'll be all." Semphoni confirmed. The guy finished typing in all their orders and quickly looked up to catch Semphoni and lean forward to whisper to her.
"Hey. You four are absolutely sexy in every way and I want to treat you guys. So how about this: I pay for your food and you get the numbers. Seem fair?" The guy asked.
"I'd give you all our numbers, but we all have a boyfriend. Sorry!" Semphoni whined sympathetically. "But, how about this: you pay for our order and we get your number so that we can call you to one of our parties. How does that sound?" Semphoni asked him. He looked at her for a while and all Semphoni could pick up from his mind was that he really liked them and wouldn't mind going to a party or two.
"Okay, but you have to call me either earlier that day or the day before. Got it?" He asked back.
"Understood. Now...about the payment. How much is it?" Semphoni asked wanting to know.
"The total came up to thirty-two dollars if you rounded. And that's not a bad total for a four-girl-group ordering. I'll have it out in a second." He told her reassuringly and then paid for them. Semphoni got the forgotten drinks and then sat down to relax.
"So?" Sharla and Kira asked together.
"'So?' what?" Semphoni asked confused.
"What did you tell him? Lexy filled us in on a few things, but not the whole thing. What did he want?" Sharla and Kira asked again more eagerly.
"He wanted to make a deal. His was that he'd pay for our order and in return we'd give him our numbers." Semphoni started.
"No way! What did you tell him?!" Lexy demanded.
"I told him that we all had boyfriends. And that's when he seemed bummed out." Semphoni continued.
"Why would you tell him that we had boyfriends?" Kira asked.
"So that he wouldn't try calling us at night while we're in school. Remember? Anyway, I gave him a deal that he actually took." Semphoni stopped there and was waiting to see how the others would react.
"Well?!" They asked in unison.
"I told him that he would pay for our order and then he'd give us his number and we'd call him and invite him to one of our parties. That's when he said he'd do it." Semphoni finished. She looked up from her drink and was startled out of her pants as she saw everyone with their mouths open.
"What?! What did I do this time?" Semphoni asked in a freaked out tone.
"Why did you say we would invite him to our parties?! Now he's going to want to come to everyone of them. What were you thinking?!" Lexy yelled at her. Thankfully there was no one else in the restaurant that would turn and stare at them.
"Look, he said he we all looked absolutely sexy. What else was I supposed to do?" Semphoni asked. Then everyone calmed down and started to blush.
"Well, if he said something like that." Sharla said as her face went as red as an apple. Then their little table blew up into a frenzy of laughter. Then there was sudden silence as the guy came over to give them their food.
"Here you go ladies!" He said cheerfully.
"Thanks!" The table said in unison.
"So...what's your name?" Lexy asked. The guy suddenly stopped in mid-air and almost fell over. The girls jumped up to catch him before he fell backward on his head.
"Are you okay?! Are you there?!" Kira asked urgently. The guy slowly gained conscience and abruptly sat up.
"Whoa! Slow down there big fellow. What happened? Did you lock your knees or something?" Semphoni asked him as calmly as she could.
"I don't know what happened. But my name is Trevor." He told them smoothly. Then Kira and Lexy sat back on their heels and gasped.
"What? What's wrong? Did I say something?" Trevor asked panicked.
"We know you! Do you remember us? Kira and Lexy?" Lexy asked him in a rushed tone. Then Trevor's jaw dropped like a rock.
"Lexy?! Kira?! Oh my God! I can't believe it! It's you two!" Trevor exclaimed.
"Wait. You know him?" Sharla asked. After being quiet for quite a while.
"Yeah! We used to go to elementary and middle school together. Don't you remember him?" Kira asked in disbelief that she didn't remember him.
"...Nope. I don't remember him at all. I think you used to talk about him a lot, but you never introduced us." Sharla and Semphoni said randomly timed.
"Oh. Well, Trevor, Sharla and Semphoni. Semphoni and Sharla, Trevor. There. We happy now?" Kira and Lexy asked simultaneously.
"Yeah. I guess so. Anyway, what happened to you?" Sharla asked concerned.
"To be honest I don't know. Lexy asked my name and then I seemed to freeze up or something. I don't know why, but that's what happened." Trevor explained. The four of them looked at him and gave him a questioning and confused look.
"I need to know something, Trevor." Sharla asked breaking the silence. "What level of finishing are you?" She asked out of nowhere. Lexy, Kira and Semphoni looked up at her and gave an alarmed look.
"Why are you asking me? Aren't you a third finisher too? Because then we'd be in the same grade. Wouldn't we?" Trevor asked suddenly confused on why Sharla asked him this.
"Really? I thought you were still in middle school. I didn't know you got Touched too. That's weird. When did you get Touched?" Sharla asked.
"Sharla! Let him breathe! Geez! He barely regained consciousness and you start asking him too many questions. Let him live for a minute or two. Speaking of minutes, we should get back to the school so that we can sleep. I am so tired that all I want to do is eat our 'lunch' and then go straight to sleep." Lexy whined.
"Well, I can get off now and we go to school and relax. I could even come into the girls' dorm and watch movies with you. By the way, do you really have boyfriends?" Trevor asked in a sheepish way. The girls looked at each other with a guilty look on each of their faces and looked down at their food. Then Semphoni spoke up since she was the one that told him that they did.
"N-no. I said that because I thought that you were one of them." Trevor got a shocked look on his face and started to laugh. Kira and Lexy looked at each with concern and worry written all over their face.
"Wh-why would think...I'm...one...of them?" Trevor laughed trying to breathe. Then Semphoni and Sharla's face went bright red.
"Well...um...because with us...those guys are attracted to us really easily. So...yeah. I mean...we didn't want to...insult you...or anything by saying something if you were. So...we tried to come up with the easiest thing we could come up with." Sharla and Semphoni explained sharing one sentence.
"Oh. Okay. That's fine though. It's better to be safe than sorry. Right?" Trevor tried to comfort.
"Well, we have our dinner now so I guess we could head back to the school together now. If that's okay with you guys." Lexy suggested. So Trevor went to the back to tell them he was going home and took off his apron and work hat and followed the girls outside to where their cars were at.
"Anybody want to ride with me?" Trevor asked trying to be helpful in some way.
"How many can fit in your car if two want to come with you?" Sharla and Kira asked.
"Well, I could take all of you, but then no one would be driving Semphoni's Porsche." Trevor pointed out.
"That's okay you guys. If you want to ride with him go ahead. I'll be fine alone in the car." Semphoni said trying to convince them. Just as she turned around toward her car, she heard a voice from behind her.
hey, people! i'm kind of new to this whole thing and i know i write a lot and i'm sorry if you weren't able to get through my probably boring story. so far i have almost nine chapters done and i'll be loading them. so keep reading! i'd really like some reviews.